MYANMAR: Myanmar activists commemorate three year anniversary of the resurgence of Kachin war

Record ID: 858873

  • Title: MYANMAR: Myanmar activists commemorate three year anniversary of the resurgence of Kachin war
  • Date: 9th June 2014
  • Summary: MYITKYINA, KACHIN STATE, MYANMAR (FILE - FEBRUARY 2012) (REUTERS) BOAT ON RIVER WOMEN AND CHILDREN REFUGEES OUTSIDE HUTS CHILDREN OUTSIDE HUTS VARIOUS OF WOMAN REFUGEE COOKING CHILDREN SITTING OUTSIDE SLEEPING AREA CHILDREN EATING IN HALL BOYS TAKING MORE RICE BOY BEING GIVEN FOOD ON HIS PLATE BOY PRAYING AT TABLE CHILDREN EATING HOUSES IN REFUGEE CAMP
  • Embargoed: 24th June 2014 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Myanmar
  • City:
  • Country: Myanmar
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVAED5NZTX81CLFT73JPD8JXT6HW
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: A group of Burmese activists and foreign aid workers gathered in a church in Yangon to commemorate the three year anniversary of the resurgence of conflict in Kachin state on Monday (June 9).
    Around 500 Burmese activists took part in prayers at the Kachin Baptist Church in Myanmar's former capital.
    The United Nations says more than 100,000 people have been displaced since an armed conflict between the Kachin Independence Army and the government erupted on June 8, 2011, ending a 17-year ceasefire.
    Jay Ya, a 32 year-old teacher, lost both her home and her youngest child in the conflict.
    Pregnant at the time, Jay Ya fled with her two children when her village was attacked. Her older son made it to the displacement camp where they now live, but her younger boy drowned as they were crossing a swiftly-flowing river.
    Three years later, their village is still not safe to go back to.
    "The authorities told us we can go back to our village but these are just words because we can still hear the sound of gunfire in our village. That's why we cannot go back. It's not safe to go back," said Ya.
    Myanmar security forces "systematically tortured" civilians in conflict-wracked northern Kachin state, said a report released by Fortify Rights, a Bangkok-based NGO, on Monday.
    The NGO said it interviewed 78 survivors and witnesses of torture perpetrated by Myanmar's army, police and military intelligence.
    Victims reported abuses that included stabbings, beatings and having wire tied around their necks to cut off circulation, the report said.
    "Fortify Rights believes the torture and the abuses taking place right now in Kachin state constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity and very little is being done to stop it" said Matthew Smith, the group's executive director.
    The report said torture was most frequently carried out by government soldiers attempting to extract information from civilians about the locations, weapons and movements of soldiers from the Kachin Independence Army.
    Government spokesman Ye Htut could not be reached for comment.
    The allegations of torture come as Myanmar's government attempts to forge a national ceasefire agreement with 16 ethnic armed groups, of whom only the Kachin Independence Army and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army have not signed separate treaties.
    In addition to ending ethnic conflicts that have destabilised Myanmar since its independence from Britain in 1948, successful peace negotiations would bolster the reformist credentials of the semi-civilian government that took power in March 2011 after five decades of military rule.
  • Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2014. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: Video restrictions: parts of this video may require additional clearances. Please see ‘Business Notes’ for more information.
Register